Down (and up) in the Valley

After restocking our pantry and fuel tank at Costco, we headed up Highway 41 the 'Southern Yosemite Hwy' to Oakhurst where our campsite was, about 17 miles from the Yosemite National Park entrance. We arrived at the High Sierra RV campground mid-afternoon and saw, unfortunately, that there were not any trees for shade on our campsite so we set up our tent on the bank of the little Fresno River in the overly warm California sun. Once camp was prepared, I drove us into the park and then we started on the 27 or so mile road to the Yosemite Valley area. We didn't get to see much while driving because of the tall pines trees lining both sides of the road. After cruising along for a perhaps an hour we reached the Wawona Tunnel. Everything had been going well until we reached the tunnel, though about half way through is where it stopped, quite literally. Traffic was stopped completely, it probably took us about 45 minutes to move the next mile to the nearest parking lot with restrooms and a short 1 mile roundtrip hiking trail to Bridalveil Fall which we decided to do since traffic was so bad and it was already getting late. 

We hiked the short trail, once again passing people of every nationality and hearing many different languages. At the end of the 0.5 mile trail the paved path ended and it became a jumble of broken granite rocks varying greatly in size which you could climb around/over to get closer to the large waterfall which was the purpose for this trail. So Jacob climbed up a little bit to get some pictures and video, which was a challenge because people were everywhere. You could occasionally see a rainbow from the mist of the waterfall, but nothing close to Vernal Falls/the Mist Trail which we'll get into later. So we walked back to the car and began the journey back to our campground since it was already 6:30pm (I think), and thankfully, there was not any traffic on the return drive. 

When we awoke Monday morning it was pretty chilly and everything was covered in dew, which was different because even waking up earlier at Guadalupe or Zion there wasn't any. I cooked our breakfast of turkey bacon and eggs, that just happened to get a little burnt… but hey, who doesn't like crispy bacon? After eating we started the long drive through Yosemite to get to Tioga Pass, which was roughly 90 miles from the park's entrance gate. I don't know if this is a generally known fact, but Yosemite Nat'l Park is humongous! The next 90 miles were the most curvy, twisty, and windy mountainous roads I have ever had the pleasure of driving on in my life; it was a lot of fun cruising on those roads, especially gliding downhill, not touching the gas for 5 minutes at a time, trying to gauge how much you need to brake to make that turn up ahead... Awesome. 

Somewhere along that road we stopped at the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias to hike along the old stagecoach road to see some of the trees growing there, which as the name implies are absolutely gigantic. The first one dubbed 'Big Red' (big was a massive understatement) marked the first mile of the trail, from where we took a 0.7 mile loop that brought us to a few more of the overly large trees, one having caught fire before crashing to the ground.

Towards the end of the loop we walked into the Tunnel Tree,  it was big enough for a stagecoach with a team of horses to pass through.Why they didn't just build the road around the tree I have no idea, but I trust that they had a good reason. Finishing the loop left us back at 'Big Red' and the now uphill hike back to the car. 

Continuing on our drive we had some pretty good elevation gain, reaching 9,945 feet at the highest point. Cruising along the road I saw what I at first though were white rocks, but as we passed more splotches of white, Sarah and I realized that it was drifts of snow. Snow! And not just a little snow either, in fact the lake we ended up stopping at was almost still completely frozen.

So after passing up more snow, an overlook of the valley with the famous Half Dome in the distance, and Tenaya Lake we came upon some traffic, and after waiting a short period we drove on past a little park building and the speed limit changed to 55mph whereas it had previously been 35-45mph in the park. And about a mile later is when we realized that we had just left Yosemite National Park… which was totally not planned but it worked out fine because about a mile from the park exit was the aforementioned partially frozen Tioga Lake where we stopped to walk around and take pictures. Some of the snow drifts were so deep that I sunk down enough to get snow inside of my 6 inch boots, and of course we're wearing shorts and short sleeve tee-shirts. Jacob even had a sleeveless tee-shirt on. Several pictures/video clips later we returned to the car and drove back to the Tenaya Lodge and ate a lunch. Our plan was to then hike to the Gaylor lakes so we parked at the Backcountry office near the Tenaya Lodge to get a trail map and told the ranger there that we'd like to hike to the Gaylor Lakes and she replied, "Be prepared for lots of snow, you'll probably be ok if you have waiters, waterproof boots and an extra pair of socks, your going to be posthole-ing up to your knees in snow." After hearing that and deciding we weren't ready for 'posthole-ing up to our knees in snow' we opted to hike the shorter 3.2 mile round trip hike to Dog Lake.

We started at somewhere near 8,000 feet elevation and gained approximately 600 feet, and I could definitely feel the effects of hiking so high up. Dog Lake was very beautiful being mostly surrounded by tall pines, a few snow drifts along the bank, and the snow covered Tioga Peak in the distance. 

The lake was kinda secluded, even from the sign that said it was 0.2 miles ahead you still couldn't see it. The hike back was uneventful and because it was mostly downhill was quite easier than the hike there. We then began the long 80+ mile drive back to the High Sierra campground with myself driving again. Did I mention that Yosemite Nat'l Park is really, really big? After dinner, which was meatballs and rice that Sarah cooked (and did not burn) we washed the dishes, took showers, and pretty much just went to bed. 

We got up Tuesday morning to find it similar to Monday, cool with dew on everything. With breakfast out of the way we chose to go to the Yosemite Village about 27 miles from the park's entrance, and stopped at the Visitor Center to get a day hikes map and browse the gifts shop. We then drove a little further and parked to fix lunch before catching a shuttle bus to take us to the Mist Trail's trailhead, which goes to both Vernal Fall (1.4 miles) and Nevada Fall (2.7 miles). The first 0.8 of a mile to the Vernal Fall footbridge was a nice paved path with 400 feet of elevation gain. There were plenty of people on the bridge since you had a good view of Vernal Fall up ahead, and we even saw a guy setting up an art canvas to paint the the river. 

The next 0.6 or so miles to the top of Vernal Fall is where things got interesting… First off in that about half mile we gained another 600ft elevation, the trail being made of granite rocks cut roughly into stairs which were completely soaked making them somewhat treacherous, and then we discovered the reason they named it the 'Mist Trail'. The Vernal Fall has a straight drop of 317 feet, with the water smashing into the uneven rocks of the river bed below causing waves of mist to spray every direction. You could practically always see a rainbow somewhere in the mist, which made for some beautiful pictures and also didn't; as soon as Jacob would begin to film the lens would get sprayed by the mist, so after each picture/video he'd try to put his back to the mist (which was difficult as it was flying everywhere) and wipe his lens clean with a quickly saturated microfiber cloth. Sunglasses weren't useable because of the water droplets they collected and none of us thought to bring our rain jackets so we got pretty wet. It was refreshing at first but soon became a little too cold with the wind blowing. 

Moving on, the next 1.5 miles of our trek to the top of Nevada Fall was similar to what we had already traversed, but with less mist and more steep granite stair switchbacks leading us up another 1,000 feet to bring us right under 6,000ft in elevation. 

You weren't able to see Nevada Falls as well as you could see Vernal falls because the trail wasn't as close to the waterfall, and once you got on top of Nevada Fall it's kinda hard to see the waterfall from the top. But the view of some of the valley was definitely better than from Vernal Fall as we were higher up. The Half Dome was towering on our left and the valley with the river stretching out below us. 

We quickly hiked back down to complete the 5.4 mile roundtrip, and rather than wait for a shuttle we chose to walk back to our car almost one mile away. After showers and dinner back at the campground we went to sleep knowing we needed to get up early to unpack the car so Jacob could repack it with the tent, tarp and sleeping bags, so we would be able to meet our good friend Andrew Jasso for lunch in San Francisco. 

So that about wraps up our stay at Yosemite National Park in California, which was very beautiful with its high rocky peaks, many waterfalls and bountiful pine forests, and as I may have mentioned before… this park is huge!

Next stop: San Francisco, California!

-John

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Happy Birthday, Johnny!!!

Cold Stone in San Francisco, CA. 

Underground in California

Back when we were in the early stages of planning our trip we started using a website that helps in mapping out your trip and finding destinations. It was through this that we found our next stop: The Forestiere Underground Gardens in Fresno, CA. 

We weren't sure what to expect but we thought it sounded cool and all the reviews said it was worth the time to visit. And boy, were they right. We were blown away by all the details that went into designing this place or as our tour guide would say #mindblown. 

Upon arrival it didn't look like too much, but there were already a line of people forming at the gate. As we entered the garden - not your typical garden full of flowers and such, there was a pomegranate tree, several citrus trees, grape vines and a few flowers but it was mainly composed of fruit bearing trees of all sizes. We were directed down a ramp, underground, to the office and gift shop area. We were able to sign up for the first tour, within a few minutes they were ready to start. 

The tour began in the ballroom with a brief history of the garden and the man who built them. Baldassare Forestiere, a Sicilian man, with a dream of coming to America to be a citrus farmer is the one responsible for excavating and designing these gardens. In 1901 Baldassare came to America, arriving in Boston he started working as a subway digger and after spending some time there he made his way to Orange County, CA and eventually to Fresno, CA where he purchased 80 acres of land to fulfil his dream of growing citrus, in the winter of 1905. The following spring he set out to plant his citrus crop. While digging he discovered what the locals call hardpan aka rock. To his disappointment it was everywhere, ranging from 2-5 feet deep. Since it appeared he was not going to get his citrus crop, Baldassare got a job as a ditch digger.

When the heat of summer came that year Baldassare trying to stay cool, had the idea to dig out a place underground as he knew it would be several degrees cooler down there due to all his time spent digging subway tunnels. After working as a ditch digger all day, he came home and began digging in his yard to find some relief from the sweltering heat. Average summer temperature can easily reach 110 degrees. Once he completed a room for himself, he thought he should build an underground resort, so that others could get out of the heat. And thus the vision for a subterranean complex of patios, grottos, and garden courts was born. 

For the next 15 years he spent his spare time digging using only hand tools: a pick axe, shovel and a wheel barrow to excavate this resort. He used the hardpan as "bricks" and mortar to build walls and used scrap metal to help support it all. At that time the local paper published an article on this "crazy man" and what he was doing. By that point he had already managed to dig out around 50 rooms on about 10 acres of his property. 

Baldassare built himself a house which was pretty nice considering it was all underground. It was complete with a kitchen and woodburning stove, a dining room, a summer and winter bedroom, doors and windows, and a patio with a fish pond. Elsewhere there was an aquarium, a well, a chapel, and several garden areas. He made all sizes of planters with all kinds of citrus trees, a few of these he had grafted together to get one tree producing multiple fruits at the same time. There was also a date, carob, and loquat tree. Most of the trees he planted back then are still growing and producing fruit. Which puts a few of them at just over 100 years old. There were several oranges, lemons, and grape fruits on several of the trees we saw and you could see the small bunches of little green grapes starting to form.  There were lots of archways and skylights. Plenty of light, it was a little dim in some of the tunnels connecting the different rooms, but for the most part it was as bright as if you were standing outside. Baldassare thought of just about everything, he was even working on a driveway so people could drive their cars down to the ballroom for parties and dances. It was 3 levels, the third being 22 feet below the surface. on the third level it was about 15 degrees cooler, I imagine it must have felt nice on those hot summer days.

We were definitely amazed and enjoyed the tour. It's a neat place to see if your ever in Fresno. It truly goes to show what you can accomplish if you put your mind to it. The gardens are still owned and operated by the third generation of the Forestiere Family. There are a few pictures below, they are not the best as Jacob didn't take in his camera, so we just snapped a few with our phones. 

Next Stop: Costco ;-) 

-Sarah

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Zion - What more can you say

Zion - how do you begin to describe the beauty of this little sanctuary in the heart of the desert? My vocabulary for descriptive words isn't that big, and without google to help me, I'm kinda left with epic, awesome and cool, which would work I guess, but they don't really fit... So I'll just show you some of the picture I took and you can come up with your own words to describe the awesomeness of Zion National Park. :p

We didn't get into Utah until pretty late Wednesday night, so when we drove through the park we couldn't see much of anything and had no idea what it was like. Everyone we had talked to said Zion was such a beautiful and amazing place. When we did finally get into the park later the next day, we all were amazed at the beauty of this valley and its sheer white and red streaked canyon walls that surrounded us on both sides. As we rode the shuttle further into the canyon and the walls begin to close in, you couldn't help but wonder how this calm and slow moving little river could carve its way through miles of solid rock.

With only two days to spend at Zion what do you do? With miles and miles of trails which ones do you hike? 

Angels Landing 

Angels landing is one of the most popular hikes in Zion, a 5.4 mile hike to the top and back, with the last half mile of the hike being a really strenuous climb, with plenty of cliff exposures and not enough guard rails. 

We started up Thursday afternoon after taking the shuttle to the trailhead. As we climbed higher and higher along the trail we got a really good view of the river below. After hiking up for what seem like a long time we reached a signpost that said "Angels Landing 0.5 miles, strenuous climb, narrow route with cliff exposures, not for those afraid of heights". 

I'm not sure how accurate this sign was, the strenuous climb and narrow route with cliff exposures was right,  it's the 0.5 miles that couldn't have been right, cause after we climbed and climbed (sometimes vertically) we'd reach a little clearing and think we had arrived, but then you'd look up and see a chain going up along the side of the mountain, and you realized you weren't there yet. This happened about 5 more times before we actually made it to the top. Now honestly the last "0.5 miles" of this hike was more of a scramble/cling to the wall for dear life, than a hike, but seeing the view from the top made it worth it, and now I could understand why this is such a popular hike.

The Narrows

Hiking in The Narrows was the highlight of our stay at Zion for me, wading through the river with the canyon walls towering above on each side, never much more than 30ft apart and sometimes getting as close as 6ft apart. From the waterfalls cascading down the sides of the smooth sandstone canyon walls to the logs and rocks that formed themselves into an unbelievable tangled mess, it was all an amazing sight to behold. With every new twist and turn in the canyon it brought on a new scene, renewing my sense of wonder and kept me wanting to see what was around the next bend. 

Our hike to the Narrows started on Friday morning, after a quick breakfast of cereal and a 35 minute shuttle ride to the temple of Sinawava where the trailhead began. Originally we were planning on hiking the left fork (aka The Subway) a 9.5 mile hike, but when we went to get the permit for it on Thursday, it had already filled up with the maximum amount of hikers for Friday and since we didn't have a full day Saturday to do it we decided to do the day hike into the Narrows. After walking for a mile along the 1 mile paved trail from the temple of Sinawava, we reached the end of the 1 mile paved trail, go figure right? From here on out the trail is through the river, no man-made trails, no signposts, just 2 canyons walls guiding you through its many twists and turns. 

Taking those first couple of steps into the river and watching the water rise up over the six inches of waterproof protection my boots have, you quickly realize how cold the water is. It didn't help that it was a cloudy day with a temperature of 60 degrees and a 30% chance of rain. After the first 200ft or so we were up to our knees in the water wading up river through the canyon. The water ranged from ankle deep to waist deep, although you could usually find a path that wasn't much more than knee deep. As we continued to hike up the canyon, the walls began to narrow, and there were more rapids and slippery rocks to walk across as the river became swifter at the narrower sections. There were plenty of areas with sandbars or gravel and debris that you could walk on for a little while, although it was much colder walking out of the water than in it. Within the first mile of walking in the Narrows we came to this waterfall gliding down the canyon wall.

Further up the canyon we found a nice spot to eat our sandwiches and take a rest. Being out of the water for 20 minutes, you really feel the cold as your boots are still filled with water and your legs are becoming numb. But there is something about having a camera in my hands that makes me forget that I'm cold and that my feet are numb. When I look through my lens at this amazing place I am completely absorbed in trying to capture the moment, but no photograph can give you the same feeling as standing in the river, seeing the canyon walls on each side tower above you and hearing the water rushing over the rocks and logs as the cries of ravens echo through the canyon. 

2.6 miles from the start we got to Orville junction, where another branch of the river joins the main canyon, we took this branch up for a ways to see what lies beyond its many twist and turns. There was much more scrambling and climbing over rocks, logs and small waterfalls in this canyon than in the main canyon. We got pretty wet in this section as there were a good many deep pools also, although we never had to swim, which was nice. Carrying my camera and glidecam up the river was pretty difficult, and more so trying to get a smooth shot while walking over slick stones and rapid moving water. I only fell once, which I though was an accomplishment, I must have gained my "balancing on slippery rocks skills" from all the time I used to spend running in the creek behind our house catching fish, turtles, snakes and what not. 

After working our way up Orville's canyon for a way, it began to drizzle, which is never a good thing when your in a slot canyon. So after looking around the next bend we decided to head back. On the way out of Orville's canyon there were some big rocks you had to climb down into the 3ft deep water. Whether you tried to slide, climb or jump down, you still got soaked with the freezing cold water. I know Sarah and John's feet were cold, hiking in their tennis shoes and vibrams didn't help much either. 

Once we got back to the fork, it had stopped raining for a while and we decided to try going up the main canyon. The main canyon was a good bit wider than Orville's so the water wasn't that deep, which made filming a little easier. I took lots of pictures and a lot more video, sometime once we finish our adventure around America I'll be uploading videos to YouTube, so if you like the pictures we've posted you'll definitely want to see some of the video clips we shot. Also for some more pictures you can follow us on Instagram @jacobandrews02 and @redfangoo.

Ok so after hiking up the main canyon for about another mile we decided it was time to turn back. We had made it to a small spring the trickled out of the moss and fern cover walls. I'm not sure exactly how far this spring was since there were not any markers or signs along the way. As soon as we started heading back it began to rain again, this time it was more than a drizzle, I had to wrap my camera up in my jacket to keep it from getting wet. The rain let up after about 15 minutes, but it was still enough to get us wet from head to toe. And then after another 15 minutes it began to rain again... so I had to wrap my camera back up. As we hurried back down the canyon we passed and were passed by a good many people going in both directions. I'm not sure how long it took us to get back to the trailhead but it didn't seem nearly as long as it had taken us to go up the river. 

Then it was a 40 minute shuttle ride back to the visitor center and a couple minute drive to our campsite. With clean shoes and super white toe nails we headed over to the restrooms for a hot shower. All in all it was a really awesome hike, something I would like to go back to and hike the full 16 miles from top to bottom. I'm not sure how John or Sarah would describe it, but I'm sure the words cold and slippery would come up a lot. But I know they enjoyed it also, just maybe not as much as me. :) I think we probably hiked around 7 miles, with 5 of those being through the river.

We had tacos for dinner that night and then went to bed after downloading all of the footage we shot that day. 

The next morning John and I got up early and took the shuttle into Zion and hiked the emerald pools trail, which after hiking in the Narrows it wasn't much, all though it did have some cool waterfalls. After that we ate breakfast, broke camp, packed the car and headed out for California. 

Next stop: Yosemite National Park!

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sorry this post took us a while to get uploaded, since none of us are good at writing it take us awhile... :p 

- Jacob

Here are some extra photos from Zion.

Tin-Man, Buckshot & Norman

We arrived at the Grand Canyon Sunday evening. After making it through the Park Entrance we stopped at the Desert View watchtower to take in the view and get some dinner.

Once we got to our campsite and finished setting up camp, we headed over to the Lodge to charge phones, camera batteries, and the laptop, edit photos, and to post the last blog entry. Which became our nightly ritual. I'm sure we were quite the sight; walking in with a power strip cord, computer, our cell phones and several camera chargers and batteries.

Monday morning, day four, we set out semi early to hike along some trails around the South Rim. There were several scenic overlooks where we were able to film and take pictures on the edge. One wife cautioned her husband not to get too close, cause he might get blown off. We hiked along the Rim Trail for roughly two miles and took the shuttle bus back to camp. Afterwards, we finalized plans for the rest of our time there and grilled some chicken for lunch. The evenings and mornings have been pretty chilly as there has been some pretty serious wind.   

Tuesday started before the sun was up, as we endeavored to hike down to the inner canyon to Plateau's Point. It's a 12.2 mile hike round trip. After taking a selfie at the trailhead we started our decent into the canyon. Along the way we were passed by a train of pack mules carrying supplies down to Phantom Ranch, the campground across the river at the bottom of the canyon. The Grand Canyon is the only place that still utilizes mules to deliver US mail.

After taking a quick break at the first rest house 1.5 miles down, we continued our hike. Several switchbacks later, we finally made it to the rest house 3 miles down. Stopped for a short break and continued on our way. We met a guy on the trail from Boerne, TX who is traveling around the U.S. also. He had ran a half marathon two days prior in NM and was headed to Yosemite that night. There's a possibility we might see him again at Mount Rushmore. Once we reached Plateau's Point, 3,060 ft from the top, we took in the amazing beauty and spectacular views.

John got his quad copter out to get some aerial footage of the inner canyon and the river below, it was pretty difficult to fly with the very strong winds blowing through the canyon. The view from here makes you realize just how deep the canyon really is. From the overlook on the Plateau we spotted a couple of rafts going down the rapids. Most likely it was a training run, since the white water rafting doesn't open until later in the summer.

On the way back up we took a break at the Indian Gardens, a campground and resting place about 4.6 miles from the top. We ate lunch there and stuck our feet in the creek. By this time it had warmed up quite a bit, it was just over 90 degrees. 

We started our trek back up with our hats and shirt soaked, although it didn't take them long to dry. It definitely was a lot different than coming down. It seemed like we were getting closer to the top, but after hiking around so many switchbacks you begin to wonder if you are ever going to reach the top. The last mile and a half was the hardest, every time you thought you had to be getting near the top, you'd look up and see people much further along and a lot higher up in a spot you didn't remember having come through. 

Eventually we made it back to the top around 5 pm. It was such a feeling of relief and accomplishment as we finished those last few feet. Even though it was a challenging hike, we enjoyed it!  We were surprised that on the hike we heard more Japanese, French, Korean, and what we think was Ukrainian than we did English

If you were wondering about the title of this post - read on for the explanation. Wednesday morning we got up early, broke camp, and repacked the car. Then we caught the shuttle bus to the "Base Camp" for our mule ride. After a brief introduction we were each assigned a mule. Our mules names were Tin-Man, Buckshot, and Norman. We climbed into the saddle, and waited in the corral for our guide, Hoop, to start us on the trail along the souther rim of the canyon. 

With roughly an hour of riding behind us and a few stops to view the canyon we reached the turnaround point. Returning along the same route gave us some amazing views of the canyon that most tourists don't see, as the mule trail is not on most maps. Once we reached the corral again we led our mules to the stock rail and dismounted, realizing that our legs were a little stiff from sitting in the saddle for 2 hours. Overall it was a great trip.


Here are some extra photos from the Grand Canyon.